Sir Henry Cooper (From HeraldScotland) Boxer; Born: May 3, 1934; Died: May 1, 2011 SIR Henry Cooper, who has died aged 76, was a boxer and one of the best-loved British sportsmen of all time. He came within seconds of defeating the great Muhammad Ali during a career in which he won no global honours but earned incredible goodwill and public support. Loading article content Armed with his legendary left hook, dubbed ’Enry’s ’Ammer, a fighter’s heart, solid skills and a winning personality, the respectful Londoner was as popular for his character outside the ring as his achievements inside it. A former British, European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion, Cooper was the first to win two BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards – in 1967 and 1970 – and reigned at home and in Europe without managing to conquer the world. Cooper stood at just 6ft but carried genuine heavyweight power, as witnessed by young American upstart Cassius Clay, who before becoming Ali, found himself floored and floundering at the hands of his British host at Wembley in June, 1963.

With Clay knocked down, his senses scrambled, the Louisville Lip barely got to his feet before being saved by the bell at the end of the fourth round. An extended break before the fight’s resumption after a rip conveniently appeared in Clay’s gloves essentially saved the future champion as he collected himself and proceeded to open up decisive cuts around Cooper’s notoriously tender eyes. The fight was stopped in that very round. While it was a non-title affair, it was Cooper’s big chance. Though defeated, it remained his big night and Ali later said Cooper “had hit him so hard that his ancestors in Africa felt it”. Three years later, a wiser Ali – having changed his name and won the world heavyweight championship – returned to London and staged a masterclass to effectively take care of unfinished business, boxing his way to another cuts stoppage. The second Ali bout was refereed by former Leith Victoria amateur champion, George Smith, who recalled: “On first seeing how bad Henry’s cut eye was, some of his corner shouted about a butt but Cooper instantly said it had been a punch, which I thought spoke volumes for his sportsmanship.” Some commentators believed he was too light to fight at heavyweight, and in today’s world he could have dominated the cruiserweight division.

But despite enjoying a successful career – won 40, lost 14, drawn one – he never won a world title and in 1971 lost to the up-and-coming Joe Bugner, trained by Glaswegian Andy Smith, in hugely controversial circumstances. Bugner claimed the British, European and Commonwealth belts by a quarter of a point, thanks to referee Harry Gibbs in a verdict poorly received by fans and which led BBC commentator Harry Carpenter to ask: “How can they take away the man’s titles like this?” Cooper announced his retirement shortly after the defeat. Born in 1934, Cooper and his identical twin brother George grew up in a council house on the Bellingham Estate on Farmstead Road, south-east London, before they were evacuated to the Sussex coast. He was nine when he began to show an interest in boxing and he started his amateur career in 1949 with the Eltham Amateur Boxing Club, where he won 73 of 84 contests. He soon rose through the ranks and went on to represent Great Britain at the Olympic Games in 1952.

In order to qualify for the Olympics he had to defeat Burntisland amateur John McLean in the British ABA final, whom Cooper beat on points. Years later they would meet occasionally at boxing events. McLean recalled: “What impressed me was that I was by then a fairly obscure local government official in Fife while Cooper had become an international celebrity. “But there was no side with him – he made me feel important and was more interested in learning about my life, family and career since our 1952 fight than trumpeting his own considerable personal achievements.’’ Cooper, who became the first man ever to win three Lonsdale belts, remained a firm favourite with a mainstream appeal few sportsman have ever achieved or are likely to again. He lived a full life after boxing and was a frequent TV guest and appeared alongside Kevin Keegan in adverts for Brut, “the deodorant with muscle”, and for Shredded Wheat. He was knighted in 2000 – becoming the first boxer to receive the honour.

His Italian-born wife Albina, 71, who was married to the former UK heavyweight champion for 47 years, suffered a heart attack at the age of 71 and died in 2008. Cooper took the loss badly and this was compounded by the death of his twin last year. He is survived by his two sons, Henry Marco and John Pietro. Henry Cooper biography, Biography, Awards and honours, Boxing career Henry Cooper : biography 3 May 1934 - 1 May 2011 Sir Henry Cooper OBE KSG (3 May 19341 May 2011) was an English heavyweight boxer known for the effectiveness of his left hook, "Enry's 'Ammer", and his knockdown of the young Muhammad Ali. Cooper held the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight titles several times throughout his career, and unsuccessfully challenged Ali for the world heavyweight championship in 1966.

Following his retirement from the sport, Cooper continued his career as a television and radio personality and was enormously popular in Britain: he was the first (and is today one of just three people) to twice win the public vote for BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award and is thus far the only boxer to be awarded a knighthood. Biography Cooper was born in Lambeth, London to Henry and Lily Cooper. He, his identical twin brother, George (1934–2010), and elder brother Bern grew up in a council house on the Bellingham Estate on Farmstead Road, South East London. During the Second World War they were evacuated to Lancing on the Sussex coast. Around 1942, their father, Henry Senior, was called up to serve in the war; the rest of the family did not see him again for almost three years. The twins attended Athelney Road School in Lewisham. The Cooper brothers were particularly close growing up and, in his biography, Henry talks of how they came to each other's aid when things turned nasty in the school playground. One particular incident landed the young Henry his first knockout in the playground.

At school, the only subject that seemed to interest Henry was history, where he enjoyed acting out scenarios. Life was tough in the latter years of the Second World War, and London life especially brought many dangers during the blackout. Henry took up many jobs, including a paper round before school and made money out of recycling golf balls to the clubhouse on the Beckenham course. All three of the Cooper brothers excelled in sport, with George and Henry exercising talents particularly in football and also cricket. George Cooper, Henry's twin, who boxed as Jim Cooper, died on 11 April 2010 at the age of 75. Henry Cooper served his National Service in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps where he was recruited for his boxing ability. Although Cooper is best known for knocking down Muhammad Ali, he defeated a string of well known heavyweights during his career, including; Zora Folley, Roy Harris, Karl Mildenberger, Alex Miteff, Wayne Bethea, Brian London, Joe Erskine, Jose Manuel Urtain, Piero Tomasoni, Dick Wipperman, Dick Richardson, Billy Walker, Tony Hughes, Jack Bodell, Jefferson Davis and Gawie De Clerk.

Cooper died on 1 May 2011 at his son's house in Oxted, Surrey, after a long illness, 2 days before his 77th birthday. Awards and honours Cooper was the first to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award twice (in 1967 and 1970) and one of only three two-time winners in the award's history (the others being Nigel Mansell in 1986 and 1992 and Damon Hill in 1994 and 1996). Cooper was given the award in 1967 for going unbeaten throughout the year. One of the most memorable fights of the year was his defeat of challenger Jack Bodell in June. His second award came in 1970, when Cooper had become the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion, cementing his reputation as one of the greatest post-war British boxers. He is the only British boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts outright.

Cooper was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1969, awarded a Papal Knighthood in 1978, and was knighted in 2000. He is also celebrated as one of the great Londoners in the "London Song" by Ray Davies on his 1998 album The Storyteller. He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1970 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at Thames Television's Euston Road Studios. Boxing career Style Although Cooper was left-handed, he used the "orthodox" stance, with his left hand and foot forward, rather than the reversed "southpaw" stance more usually adopted by a left-handed boxer. Opponents were thus hit hardest with left handed punches which Cooper could throw from his front hand, closest to the opponent. Cooper's left hook has been described as the best of any heavyweight. At its most effective the so called left hook had an upward uppercut-like trajectory; frequently resulting in opponents being knocked out. A formidable left jab completed his offensive repertoire; often combined to 'hook off the jab'.

He generally tried to force the action in his bouts, a crowd pleasing style which won him many supporters. After developing a left shoulder problem in the latter half of his career Cooper adjusted to put more stress on right-handed punches which he had hitherto neglected. Family Announcements, George Cooper - Funeral Directors and services - Family Announcements Announcements Originally printed on April 19, 2010 in the Family Announcements. Viewed by 2108 Visitors. George Cooper, the twin brother of Commonwealth heavyweight champion Henry Cooper, died on 11 April, 2010, aged 75.As well as having a boxing career of his own, Mr Cooper helped his brother’s career as a coach and confidant.The Cooper twins were born on 3 May, 1934, and grew up on a council estate in South East London. They inherited their passion for boxing from their father.In his autobiography Henry wrote: “We went to school together, we went boxing together, we were together in the Army.

We look alike, we think alike, in temperament we're similar and often we catch ourselves repeating each other's remarks.”They both joined Bellingham Amateur Boxing Club, George fighting as Jim Cooper to avoid confusion with another George Cooper boxing at the time. George could have matched his brother’s progress in the ring, and reportedly had a harder punch, but he suffered a cut eye and broken thumb, as well as a bout of rheumatic fever, which hampered his early career.The brothers Cooper signed professional contracts and fought their first professional bouts on the same bill in 1954. But in 1964 George retired after 16 wins, 14 losses and one draw.The twins were always at ringside for each other’s fights and George remained part of Henry’s entourage for the last decade of his career during which he added the European belt to his haul and came close to beating Cassius Clay in a controversial 1963 fight, before retiring in 1971. Henry Cooper (boxer) : Wikis (The Full Wiki) The Full Wiki More info on Henry Cooper (boxer) Wikis Note: Many of our articles have direct quotes from sources you can cite, within the Wikipedia article!

This article doesn't yet, but we're working on it! See more info or our list of citable articles . Related top topics For the Australian boxer, see Henry C. Cooper . Sir Henry Cooper 3 May 1934 (1934-05-03) (age 75) Birth place No contests 0 Sir Henry Cooper OBE , KSG (born 3 May 1934) in South East London , is a retired English heavyweight boxer and was the British, European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion in 1970. He is the only British boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts outright. Contents 6 External links Biography Cooper and his identical twin brother, George, grew up in a council house on the Bellingham Estate on Farmstead Road, South East London , although during the Second World War they were relocated as evacuees to Lancing on the Sussex coast . Around 1942, their father, Henry Senior was called up to serve in the war; the rest of the family would not see him again for almost three years. The twins would attend Athelney Road School in Lewisham .

The Cooper brothers were particularly close growing up and, in his biography, Henry talks of how they would come to each other’s aid when things turned nasty in the school playground. One particular incident would land the young Henry his first knockout in the playground. At school, the only subject that seemed to interest Henry was history where he had the enjoyment of acting out scenarios. Life was tough in the latter years of the Second World War , and especially in London, urban life brought many dangers during the blackout . Henry had to take up many jobs including a paper round before school and even making money out of recycling to the clubhouse golf balls on the Beckenham course. All three of the Cooper brothers were known to excel in sport with George and Henry exercising talents particularly in football and also cricket . [1] Career highlights Advertisements Early bouts Cooper is often regarded as the most popular of all English boxers and is still affectionately known in the UK as: "Our 'Enry". He started his boxing career in 1949 as an amateur with the Eltham Amateur Boxing Club, and won seventy-three of eighty-four contests.

At the age of seventeen, he won the first of two ABA light-heavyweight titles and before serving in the Army for his two years' National Service represented Britain in the 1952 Olympics (outpointed in the second stage by Russian Anatoli Petrov). Henry and his twin brother, George (boxing under the name Jim Cooper) turned professional together under the caring management of Jim Wicks, who was one of boxing's great characters nicknamed 'The Bishop' because of his benign nature. He would never allow one of his boxers into the ring if he felt they were over matched. He famously said when promoters were trying to match Henry with the then unbeaten and feared Sonny Liston: "I would not allow 'Enery into the same room as him, let alone the same ring." Henry was at one time the British , European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion. His early title challenges were unsuccessful, losing to Joe Bygraves for the Commonwealth belt (KO 9), Ingemar Johansson for the European belt (KO 5) and Joe Erskine (PTS 15) for the British and Commonwealth.

He then won on points over highly rated contender Zora Folley and took the British and Commonwealth belts from new champion Brian London in a 15 round decision in January 1959. The winner of the fight was pencilled in to get a shot at Floyd Patterson 's heavyweight title, but Cooper turned down the chance and London fought and lost against Patterson in May 1959. Cooper continued to defend his British and Commonwealth belts against all comers including Dick Richardson (KO 5), Joe Erskine (TKO 5 and TKO 12), Johnny Prescott (TKO 10) and Brian London again (PTS 15), although he suffered a setback when losing a rematch with Folley by a second round KO.

Cooper was also offered a chance to fight Sonny Liston but his manager Jim Wicks rejected the idea, saying "We don't even want to meet Liston walking down the same street." [2] Fight with Cassius Clay Cooper fought Cassius Clay twice, firstly in a non-title fight in 1963 at Wembley Stadium , when Cooper knocked Clay down in the dying seconds of the fourth round with his trademark left hook , "Enry's 'Ammer". The bell rang before Cooper could try to complete a knockout. Clay was literally, "saved by the bell." Prior to the fight Clay's trainer Angelo Dundee had noticed a small tear in one of Clay's gloves but didn't bring it to the referee's attention. With Clay now staggered from the knock down, Dundee opened up the tear with his finger and told the referee that his fighter needed a new pair of gloves, thus delaying the start of the 5th round. [3] Cooper has always insisted that this delay lasted anywhere from 3–5 minutes and denied him the chance to try to knock Clay out while he was still dazed.

When the 5th round finally started, Clay ferociously attacked Cooper's cuts, leaving Cooper's face streaming with blood and referee Tommy Little was forced to stop the fight in the American's favour. The British boxing newspaper Boxing News conducted an investigation into the 'split glove' incident in 2003. Using the original television and radio broadcasts to determine length of time between rounds 4 and 5 it was discovered that Cassius Clay only gained 5 seconds extra and not the mythical 3–5 minutes. The gloves were never changed. Other sources on the matter confirm this. [4] [5] After this fight a spare pair of gloves was always required at ringside. What is certain however, is that Dundee broke a phial containing an unknown substance and held it under Clay's nose in an effort to revive his man, which was illegal. [6] Clay was obviously impressed by the knockdown and on the 40th anniversary telephoned Cooper to reminisce. Clay who had changed his name to Muhammad Ali in 1964, later said, on British television, that Cooper "had hit [him] so hard that his ancestors in Africa felt it".

In 1966 they met a second time at Arsenal Stadium in London to contest the world title. Cooper was deafeated again by Ali. Last fights After the loss to Ali, Cooper fought former heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson , losing by a fourth round knockout. After that he went undefeated until the final fight of his career, and made more defences of his British & Commonwealth titles against Jack Bodell (TKO 2 and PTS 15) and Billy Walker (TKO 6). In 1968 Cooper added the European crown to his domestic titles with a win over Karl Mildenberger , and later made two successful defences of his title. In his last fight, in 1971, he faced the emerging British heavyweight hope Joe Bugner for the British, European and Commonwealth belts. Fight referee Harry Gibbs awarded the fight to Bugner by the narrowest of margins: a quarter of a point. Many felt that defeating the popular Cooper was one reason why British fans didn't take to Bugner. The decision was booed by the audience, which was mainly composed of Cooper's fans.

Commentator Harry Carpenter asked, "How can they take away the man's titles like this?" However, one commentator felt the younger, stronger Bugner had done enough to win. [7] Cooper announced his retirement shortly afterwards. For years after the fight, Cooper refused to speak to Gibbs. Cooper has since stated: "I didn't speak to him for years after the fight. I don't usually hold grudges, but I knew certain things went on before the fight (that I don't want to speak about) and for those reasons I didn't speak to him until about six months before he died." Cooper eventually agreed to shake his hand for charity. [8] Alongside figures such as Frank Bruno , Joe Bugner , Tommy Farr and Lennox Lewis , Cooper is regarded as one of the all-time best British heavyweights. Life outside boxing During the early 1990s, Cooper reminisced about his life as a wartime evacuee in the BBC Radio 2 documentary Nobody Cried When The Trains Pulled Out. He remembered being taken from his London home to the Sussex coast. "Right into the path of the German bombers, thanks a lot," he laughed.

The programme was written by Terence Pettigrew and presented by Michael Aspel, both fellow-evacuees. He gained further fame after his career ended by being one of the team captains on the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport for a number of years. Cooper also famously advertised Brut aftershave and was very active in charity work. He also advertised breakfast cereal on television in the 1980s [9] In 1980, Cooper wrote a book called The Great Heavyweights in which he spoke of the men whom he considered the finest of all time. They are Jack Johnson , Jack Dempsey , Joe Louis , Rocky Marciano and Muhammad Ali . He analyzed each and compared their strengths and weaknesses. Cooper featured in a series of UK public service announcements urging vulnerable groups to go to their doctor for vaccination against influenza . The series was called Get your Jab in First!, a reference to both the colloquial term for an injection and the boxing punch .

[10] Cooper currently lives in Hildenborough , in Kent and he currently is the chairman of Nizels Golf Club in Hildenborough Awards and honours Cooper was the first to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award twice (in 1967 and 1970) and one of only three two-time winners in the award's history (the others being Nigel Mansell in 1986 and 1992 and Damon Hill in 1994 and 1996). Cooper was given the award in 1967 for going unbeaten throughout the year. One of the most memorable fights of the year was his defeat of challenger Jack Bodell in June. His second award came in 1970, when Cooper had become the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion, cementing his reputation as one of the greatest post-war British boxers. Henry Cooper was knighted in 2000. [11] [12] References ^ Edwards, Robert. Henry Cooper: The Authorised Biography Of Britain's Greatest Boxing Hero. Helter Skelter. pp. 51–58.

ISBN 0563488-31-X. Henry Cooper Heavyweight Lonsdale Belt || Boxing Memorabilia || Champs UK MUHAMMAD ALI Henry Cooper Heavyweight LONSDALE BELT Sir Henry Cooper heavyweight LONSDALE BELT won when he defeated Johnny Prescott in1965. He would later defend the title twice in 1967 by beating Jack Bodell and Billy Walker which gave Cooper the rightful ownership of the illustrious belt. Made by Mappin & Webb, Sheffield, 1964, the central oval enamel portrait of Lord Lonsdale surmounted by lion passant engraved on the mount Lord Lonsdale Challenge Belt British Boxing Board of Control First President (1929) Heavyweight Championship of Great Britain and on the reverse 'This belt is the sole property of Henry Cooper who has won the heavyweight championship of Great Britain three times', flanked by hinged strap work and four oval medallions cast with emblems of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland and two enamel plaques of boxers in action, three plaques engraved with championship fight details St.

Andrews, Birmingham 17th June 1965, Henry Cooper v Johnny Prescott won by Henry Cooper (in 10 rounds); Molineux Football Ground, Wolverhampton 13th June 1967, Henry Cooper v Jack Bodell won by Henry Cooper (In 2 rounds); Empire Pool Wembley 7th November 1967 Henry Cooper v Billy Walker won by Henry Cooper (in 6 rounds), complete with red, white and blue ribbon backing and in original velvet lined and leather mounted Mappin & Webb case, the belt 37in (94cm) long. Condition ****AWESOME**** (red, white and blue fabric backing detached in some places nothing a steady hand and needle couldn't repair) The Lonsdale Belt was a boxing prize introduced by Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale, to be awarded to British boxing champions. It is still awarded to British champions today. National Sporting Club Lord Samuel Wallace Lonsdale organised boxing matches and was the first president of the National Sporting Club. In 1909, he introduced the Lonsdale Belt as a new trophy for the British champion at each weight division.

The belts were crafted from porcelain and twenty-two carat gold, supported by red, white and blue fabric backing, and were only to be held by a fighter as long as he was British champion. However, a British champion was allowed to keep his Lonsdale Belt if he defended his title successfully twice. Later belts were made from nine carat gold rather than the original twenty-two carat. A total of 22 Lonsdale belts were issued by the National Sporting Club, and of these 20 were won outright. British Boxing Board of Control The National Sporting Club became virtually defunct in the early 1930s and lost control of the sport to the British Boxing Board of Control. The latter body began issuing Lonsdale belts from 1936 onwards. Henry Cooper is the only man ever to win three Lonsdale belts outright. In 1987 the B.B.B.C. decided no longer to award any fighter more than one belt in the same weight division. This still allows a fighter to win belts outright at two or more different weights.

The Lonsdale Belt won by Bombardier Billy Wells in 1911 is now kept at the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, South East London, and is not on display to the general public. In November 2000 the belt awarded to Randy Turpin in 1956 was auctioned for £23,000, while, in September 2011, that won by the welterweight Jack Hood in 1926, fetched £36,000. Hood, who died in 1992, had displayed the latter above the bar at the Bell public house in Tanworth-in-Arden of which he was the licensee. Price: £ SOLD Please view shipping amounts or please contact us for any other enquiries. Shipping Amount: £ Henry Cooper's 3rd Lonsdale Belt Win Against Billy "Golden Boy" Walker 1967 Sir Henry Cooper OBE KSG (3 May 1934 – 1 May 2011) was an English heavyweight known for the effectiveness of his left hook, "Enry's 'Ammer", and his knockdown of the young Muhammad Ali.

Cooper held the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight titles several times throughout his career, and unsuccessfully challenged Ali for the World heavyweight championship in 1966. Following his retirement from the sport, Cooper continued his career as a television and radio personality and was enormously popular in Britain: he was the first (and is today one of just three people) to twice win the public vote for BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award and is thus far the only boxer to be awarded a knighthood. Biography Cooper was born in Lambeth, London to Henry and Lily Cooper. He, his identical twin brother, George (1934–2010), and elder brother Bern grew up in a council house on the Bellingham Estate on Farmstead Road, South East London. During the Second World War they were evacuated to Lancing on the Sussex coast. Around 1942, their father, Henry Senior, was called up to serve in the war; the rest of the family did not see him again for almost three years. The twins attended Athelney Road School in Lewisham.

The Cooper brothers were particularly close growing up and, in his biography, Henry talks of how they came to each other's aid when things turned nasty in the school playground. One particular incident landed the young Henry his first knockout in the playground. At school, the only subject that seemed to interest Henry was history, where he enjoyed acting out scenarios. Life was tough in the latter years of the Second World War, and London life especially brought many dangers during the blackout. Henry took up many jobs, including a paper round before school and made money out of recycling golf balls to the clubhouse on the Beckenham course. All three of the Cooper brothers excelled in sport, with George and Henry exercising talents particularly in football and also cricket. George Cooper, Henry's twin, who boxed as Jim Cooper, died on 11 April 2010 at the age of 75. Henry Cooper served his National Service in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps where he was recruited for his boxing ability.

Although Cooper is best known for knocking down Muhammad Ali, he defeated a string of well known heavyweights during his career, including; Zora Folley, Roy Harris, Karl Mildenberger, Alex Miteff, Wayne Bethea, Brian London, Joe Erskine, Jose Manuel Urtain, Piero Tomasoni, Dick Wipperman, Dick Richardson, Billy Walker, Tony Hughes, Jack Bodell, Jefferson Davis and Gawie De Clerk. Cooper died on 1 May 2011 at his son's house in Oxted, Surrey, after a long illness, 2 days before his 77th birthday. Boxing Career - Style Although Cooper was left-handed, he used the "orthodox" stance, with his left hand and foot forward, rather than the reversed "southpaw" stance more usually adopted by a left-handed boxer. He relied on an exceptionally powerful left hook and a formidable jab for offence, being able to effectively combine the two to 'hook off the jab'. He generally tried to force the action in his bouts, a crowd pleasing style which won him many supporters.

After developing a left shoulder problem in the latter half of his career Cooper adjusted to put more stress on right-handed punches which he had hitherto neglected. Early Bouts Cooper was often regarded as the most popular of all English boxers and was affectionately known in the UK as: "Our 'Enery". He started his boxing career in 1949 as an amateur with the Eltham Amateur Boxing Club, and won seventy-three of eighty-four contests. At the age of seventeen, he won the first of two ABA light-heavyweight titles and before serving in the Army for his two years' National Service represented Britain in the 1952 Olympics (outpointed in the second stage by Russian Anatoli Petrov). Henry and his twin brother, George (boxing under the name Jim Cooper) turned professional together under the caring management of Jim Wicks, who was one of boxing's great characters and nicknamed 'The Bishop' because of his benign nature. He would never allow one of his boxers into the ring if he felt he was over-matched.

He famously said when promoters were trying to match Henry with Sonny Liston: "I would not allow 'Enery into the same room as him, let alone the same ring." Henry was at one time the British, European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion. His early title challenges were unsuccessful, losing to Joe Bygraves for the Commonwealth belt (KO 9), Ingemar Johansson for the European belt (KO 5) and Joe Erskine (PTS 15) for the British and Commonwealth. He then won on points over highly rated contender Zora Folley and took the British and Commonwealth belts from new champion Brian London in a 15 round decision in January 1959. The winner of the fight was pencilled in to get a shot at Floyd Patterson's heavyweight title, but Cooper turned down the chance and London fought and lost against Patterson in May 1959.

Cooper continued to defend his British and Commonwealth belts against all comers, including Dick Richardson (KO 5), Joe Erskine (TKO 5 and TKO 12), Johnny Prescott (TKO 10), and Brian London again (PTS 15), although he suffered a setback when losing a rematch with Folley by a second round KO." Muhammad Ali Cooper twice fought Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay), firstly in a non-title fight in 1963 at Wembley Stadium. Cooper did not have a trainer at that time and his own regime led to his losing weight; he later averred that lead was inserted in his boots for the weigh-in and estimated his true weight to have been 12 stone 12 lb (81 kg), making him 27 pounds lighter than Clay. Commentator Harry Carpenter remarked during the introductions on the difference in size between the boxers. Clay's mobility, fast reflexes, height and unorthodox defensive tactic of pulling back from punches made him a frustratingly elusive opponent; some of Cooper's work during the contest has been described as 'very near the knuckle' with Clay later complaining of being repeatedly hit on the break.

In the dying seconds of the fourth round, Cooper felled Clay with an upward angled version of his trademark left hook, "Enry's 'Ammer". Unfortunately for Cooper, his opponent's armpit caught in the ropes going down, which prevented his head from striking the canvas covered boards which made up the floor of the ring (something which could easily have knocked him unconscious). Clay stood up and started slowly towards Angelo Dundee who - in violation of the rules - guided him into the corner. At first Dundee talked and slapped Clay's legs, but after a still-dazed Clay misunderstood and tried to get off the stool Dundee used smelling salts in a serious violation of the rules. Dundee has since claimed to have opened a small tear in one of Clay's gloves and told the referee that his fighter needed a new pair of gloves, thus delaying the start of the 5th round. Cooper has always insisted that this delay lasted anywhere from 3–5 minutes and denied him the chance to try to knock Clay out while he was still dazed. In tapes of the fight it seems Clay received only an extra six seconds (although there are still doubters who think a longer delay was edited out) and the gloves were not replaced.

Cooper started the 5th round aggressively, attempting to make good his advantage, but a recovered Clay effectively countered and Cooper was hit high on the face with a hard right which opened a severe cut under his eye; referee Tommy Little was forced to stop the fight in the American's favour although Cooper was ahead on the scorecards. After this fight, a spare pair of gloves was always required at ringside. What is certain, however, is that Dundee held smelling salts under Clay's nose in an effort to revive his man, which was illegal. Clay was obviously impressed by the knockdown and on the 40th anniversary of the fight telephoned Cooper to reminisce. Clay, who had changed his name to Muhammad Ali in 1964, later said on British television that Cooper "had hit him so hard that his ancestors in Africa felt it". In 1966 Cooper fought Ali, now World heavyweight champion, for a second time at Highbury. However Ali was now alert to the danger posed by Cooper's left and more cautious than he had been in the previous contest; he held Cooper in a vice-like grip during clinches, and when told to break leapt backward several feet.

Accumulated scar tissue around Cooper's eyes made him more vulnerable than in the previous meeting and a serious cut was opened by Ali, which led to the fight being stopped, Cooper again suffering a technical knockout when he was ahead on the scorecards. Last Fights After the loss to Ali, Cooper fought former heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson, losing by a fourth round knockout. After that he went undefeated until the final fight of his career, and made more defences of his British and Commonwealth titles against Jack Bodell (TKO 2 and PTS 15) and Billy Walker (TKO 6). In 1968 Cooper added the European crown to his domestic titles with a win over Karl Mildenberger, and later made two successful defences of his title. In his last fight, in May 1971, a 36 year old Cooper faced 21 year old Joe Bugner, one of the biggest heavyweights in the World, for the British, European and Commonwealth belts. Referee Harry Gibbs awarded the fight to Bugner by the narrowest of margins, a quarter of a point.

An audience mainly composed of Cooper fans did not appreciate the innately cautious Bugner and the decision was booed with commentator Harry Carpenter asking, "How can they take away the man's titles like this?". Cooper announced his retirement shortly afterwards. For years after the fight Cooper refused to speak to Gibbs, but eventually agreed to shake his hand for charity six months before Gibbs died. Opinion On Modern Boxers In Cooper's later years, he retired from commentary on the sport as he became "disillusioned with boxing", wanting "straight, hard and fast boxing that he was used to from his times." While acknowledging that he was from a different era and would not be fighting as a heavyweight today, Cooper was nonetheless critical of the trend for heavyweights to bulk up as he thought it made for one-paced and less entertaining contests. In his final year, he said plainly that he did not "think boxing is as good as it was", naming Joe Calzaghe, Ricky Hatton and Amir Khan as "the best of their era", but asserting that "if you match them up with the champions of thirty or forty years ago I don't think they're as good".

Life Outside Boxing After his retirement from boxing Henry Cooper maintained a high public profile with appearances in the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport and various advertisements, most famously in those for Brut aftershave, which have been credited with removing a lingering suspicion among the British that men who wore cologne were effeminate. Although generally a traditionalist, Cooper abhorred racism; his grandfather was an Irish immigrant and Cooper became the first celebrity sponsor of the Anti-Nazi League, a largely left-wing campaign against far-right groups which were agitating against immigration. He was also active in charity events. He appeared as boxer John Gully in the 1975 film Royal Flash and in his latter years featured in a series of UK public service announcements urging vulnerable groups to go to their doctor for vaccination against influenza called Get your Jab in First! Cooper had become a 'name' at Lloyd's of London, a supposedly 'blue chip' investment, but in the 1990s he was reportedly one of those who suffered enormous personal losses because of the unlimited liability which a 'name' was then responsible for, and he was forced to sell his hard won Lonsdale belts.

Subsequently, Cooper's enduring popularity as an after dinner speaker provided a source of income and he was in most respects a picture of contentment until the death of his wife. Considering his long career, Henry Cooper had suffered relatively little boxing-related damage to his health. Apart from "a bit of arthritis", his only problem had been damage to a knee because of running several miles a day in plimsolls in the days before trainers became available. Cooper remained an imposing figure into his seventies, in the words of one journalist, "the living manifestation of an age of tuxedos in ringside seats, Harry Carpenter commentaries, sponge buckets and 'seconds out'". He lived in Hildenborough, Kent, and he was the president of Nizels Golf Club in the town until his death. Cooper was married to Albina Genepri, an Italian Catholic, from 1960 until her death from a heart attack aged 71 in 2008. He converted to her faith. He was survived by their sons, Henry Marco and John Pietro, and two grandchildren. He left £747,098.

In an interview published a few days after his death, Cooper described Albina, who "hated" his sport, as "an ideal wife for a boxer", never grumbling about his long absences before big fights and inviting journalists in for tea while they waited for Cooper to get out of bed the morning after bouts. Awards And Honours Cooper was the first to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award twice (in 1967 and 1970) and one of only three two-time winners in the award's history (the others being Nigel Mansell in 1986 and 1992 and Damon Hill in 1994 and 1996). Cooper was given the award in 1967 for going unbeaten throughout the year. One of the most memorable fights of the year was his defeat of challenger Jack Bodell in June. His second award came in 1970, when Cooper had become the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion, cementing his reputation as one of the greatest post-war British boxers. He is the only British boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts outright.

Cooper was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1969, awarded a Papal Knighthood in 1978, and was knighted in 2000. He is also celebrated as one of the great Londoners in the "London Song" by Ray Davies on his 1998 album The Storyteller. Henry Cooper Vs Roger Rischer Programme Career History Collectors Card Signed By Sir Henry Cooper || Boxing Memorabilia || Champs UK MUHAMMAD ALI Henry Cooper vs Roger Rischer Programme Career History Collectors Card SIGNED By Sir Henry Cooper Henry Cooper vs Roger Rischer programme career history collectors card SIGNED by Sir Henry Cooper, 16th November 1964, Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London. Measuring 2 1/4" x 3 1/4" and contains detailed fight report on reverse. Condition mint Rischer W Pts over 10 rounds Price: £20 Please view shipping amounts or please contact us for any other enquiries.

Shipping Amount: £ Sir Henry Cooper OBE KSG (3 May 1934 – 1 May 2011) was an English heavyweight known for the effectiveness of his left hook, "Enry's 'Ammer", and his knockdown of the young Muhammad Ali. Cooper held the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight titles several times throughout his career, and unsuccessfully challenged Ali for the World heavyweight championship in 1966. Following his retirement from the sport, Cooper continued his career as a television and radio personality and was enormously popular in Britain: he was the first (and is today one of just three people) to twice win the public vote for BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award and is thus far the only boxer to be awarded a knighthood. Biography Cooper was born in Lambeth, London to Henry and Lily Cooper. He, his identical twin brother, George (1934–2010), and elder brother Bern grew up in a council house on the Bellingham Estate on Farmstead Road, South East London. During the Second World War they were evacuated to Lancing on the Sussex coast.

Around 1942, their father, Henry Senior, was called up to serve in the war; the rest of the family did not see him again for almost three years. The twins attended Athelney Road School in Lewisham. The Cooper brothers were particularly close growing up and, in his biography, Henry talks of how they came to each other's aid when things turned nasty in the school playground. One particular incident landed the young Henry his first knockout in the playground. At school, the only subject that seemed to interest Henry was history, where he enjoyed acting out scenarios. Life was tough in the latter years of the Second World War, and London life especially brought many dangers during the blackout. Henry took up many jobs, including a paper round before school and made money out of recycling golf balls to the clubhouse on the Beckenham course. All three of the Cooper brothers excelled in sport, with George and Henry exercising talents particularly in football and also cricket. George Cooper, Henry's twin, who boxed as Jim Cooper, died on 11 April 2010 at the age of 75. Henry Cooper served his National Service in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps where he was recruited for his boxing ability.

Although Cooper is best known for knocking down Muhammad Ali, he defeated a string of well known heavyweights during his career, including; Zora Folley, Roy Harris, Karl Mildenberger, Alex Miteff, Wayne Bethea, Brian London, Joe Erskine, Jose Manuel Urtain, Piero Tomasoni, Dick Wipperman, Dick Richardson, Billy Walker, Tony Hughes, Jack Bodell, Jefferson Davis and Gawie De Clerk. Cooper died on 1 May 2011 at his son's house in Oxted, Surrey, after a long illness, 2 days before his 77th birthday. Boxing Career - Style Although Cooper was left-handed, he used the "orthodox" stance, with his left hand and foot forward, rather than the reversed "southpaw" stance more usually adopted by a left-handed boxer. He relied on an exceptionally powerful left hook and a formidable jab for offence, being able to effectively combine the two to 'hook off the jab'. He generally tried to force the action in his bouts, a crowd pleasing style which won him many supporters.

After developing a left shoulder problem in the latter half of his career Cooper adjusted to put more stress on right-handed punches which he had hitherto neglected. Early Bouts Cooper was often regarded as the most popular of all English boxers and was affectionately known in the UK as: "Our 'Enery". He started his boxing career in 1949 as an amateur with the Eltham Amateur Boxing Club, and won seventy-three of eighty-four contests. At the age of seventeen, he won the first of two ABA light-heavyweight titles and before serving in the Army for his two years' National Service represented Britain in the 1952 Olympics (outpointed in the second stage by Russian Anatoli Petrov). Henry and his twin brother, George (boxing under the name Jim Cooper) turned professional together under the caring management of Jim Wicks, who was one of boxing's great characters and nicknamed 'The Bishop' because of his benign nature. He would never allow one of his boxers into the ring if he felt he was over-matched.

He famously said when promoters were trying to match Henry with Sonny Liston: "I would not allow 'Enery into the same room as him, let alone the same ring." Henry was at one time the British, European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion. His early title challenges were unsuccessful, losing to Joe Bygraves for the Commonwealth belt (KO 9), Ingemar Johansson for the European belt (KO 5) and Joe Erskine (PTS 15) for the British and Commonwealth. He then won on points over highly rated contender Zora Folley and took the British and Commonwealth belts from new champion Brian London in a 15 round decision in January 1959. The winner of the fight was pencilled in to get a shot at Floyd Patterson's heavyweight title, but Cooper turned down the chance and London fought and lost against Patterson in May 1959.

Cooper continued to defend his British and Commonwealth belts against all comers, including Dick Richardson (KO 5), Joe Erskine (TKO 5 and TKO 12), Johnny Prescott (TKO 10), and Brian London again (PTS 15), although he suffered a setback when losing a rematch with Folley by a second round KO." Muhammad Ali Cooper twice fought Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay), firstly in a non-title fight in 1963 at Wembley Stadium. Cooper did not have a trainer at that time and his own regime led to his losing weight; he later averred that lead was inserted in his boots for the weigh-in and estimated his true weight to have been 12 stone 12 lb (81 kg), making him 27 pounds lighter than Clay. Commentator Harry Carpenter remarked during the introductions on the difference in size between the boxers. Clay's mobility, fast reflexes, height and unorthodox defensive tactic of pulling back from punches made him a frustratingly elusive opponent; some of Cooper's work during the contest has been described as 'very near the knuckle' with Clay later complaining of being repeatedly hit on the break.

In the dying seconds of the fourth round, Cooper felled Clay with an upward angled version of his trademark left hook, "Enry's 'Ammer". Unfortunately for Cooper, his opponent's armpit caught in the ropes going down, which prevented his head from striking the canvas covered boards which made up the floor of the ring (something which could easily have knocked him unconscious). Clay stood up and started slowly towards Angelo Dundee who - in violation of the rules - guided him into the corner. At first Dundee talked and slapped Clay's legs, but after a still-dazed Clay misunderstood and tried to get off the stool Dundee used smelling salts in a serious violation of the rules. Dundee has since claimed to have opened a small tear in one of Clay's gloves and told the referee that his fighter needed a new pair of gloves, thus delaying the start of the 5th round. Cooper has always insisted that this delay lasted anywhere from 3–5 minutes and denied him the chance to try to knock Clay out while he was still dazed. In tapes of the fight it seems Clay received only an extra six seconds (although there are still doubters who think a longer delay was edited out) and the gloves were not replaced.

Cooper started the 5th round aggressively, attempting to make good his advantage, but a recovered Clay effectively countered and Cooper was hit high on the face with a hard right which opened a severe cut under his eye; referee Tommy Little was forced to stop the fight in the American's favour although Cooper was ahead on the scorecards. After this fight, a spare pair of gloves was always required at ringside. What is certain, however, is that Dundee held smelling salts under Clay's nose in an effort to revive his man, which was illegal. Clay was obviously impressed by the knockdown and on the 40th anniversary of the fight telephoned Cooper to reminisce. Clay, who had changed his name to Muhammad Ali in 1964, later said on British television that Cooper "had hit him so hard that his ancestors in Africa felt it". In 1966 Cooper fought Ali, now World heavyweight champion, for a second time at Highbury. However Ali was now alert to the danger posed by Cooper's left and more cautious than he had been in the previous contest; he held Cooper in a vice-like grip during clinches, and when told to break leapt backward several feet.

Accumulated scar tissue around Cooper's eyes made him more vulnerable than in the previous meeting and a serious cut was opened by Ali, which led to the fight being stopped, Cooper again suffering a technical knockout when he was ahead on the scorecards. Last Fights After the loss to Ali, Cooper fought former heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson, losing by a fourth round knockout. After that he went undefeated until the final fight of his career, and made more defences of his British and Commonwealth titles against Jack Bodell (TKO 2 and PTS 15) and Billy Walker (TKO 6). In 1968 Cooper added the European crown to his domestic titles with a win over Karl Mildenberger, and later made two successful defences of his title. In his last fight, in May 1971, a 36 year old Cooper faced 21 year old Joe Bugner, one of the biggest heavyweights in the World, for the British, European and Commonwealth belts. Referee Harry Gibbs awarded the fight to Bugner by the narrowest of margins, a quarter of a point.

An audience mainly composed of Cooper fans did not appreciate the innately cautious Bugner and the decision was booed with commentator Harry Carpenter asking, "How can they take away the man's titles like this?". Cooper announced his retirement shortly afterwards. For years after the fight Cooper refused to speak to Gibbs, but eventually agreed to shake his hand for charity six months before Gibbs died. Opinion On Modern Boxers In Cooper's later years, he retired from commentary on the sport as he became "disillusioned with boxing", wanting "straight, hard and fast boxing that he was used to from his times." While acknowledging that he was from a different era and would not be fighting as a heavyweight today, Cooper was nonetheless critical of the trend for heavyweights to bulk up as he thought it made for one-paced and less entertaining contests. In his final year, he said plainly that he did not "think boxing is as good as it was", naming Joe Calzaghe, Ricky Hatton and Amir Khan as "the best of their era", but asserting that "if you match them up with the champions of thirty or forty years ago I don't think they're as good".

Life Outside Boxing After his retirement from boxing Henry Cooper maintained a high public profile with appearances in the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport and various advertisements, most famously in those for Brut aftershave, which have been credited with removing a lingering suspicion among the British that men who wore cologne were effeminate. Although generally a traditionalist, Cooper abhorred racism; his grandfather was an Irish immigrant and Cooper became the first celebrity sponsor of the Anti-Nazi League, a largely left-wing campaign against far-right groups which were agitating against immigration. He was also active in charity events. He appeared as boxer John Gully in the 1975 film Royal Flash and in his latter years featured in a series of UK public service announcements urging vulnerable groups to go to their doctor for vaccination against influenza called Get your Jab in First! Cooper had become a 'name' at Lloyd's of London, a supposedly 'blue chip' investment, but in the 1990s he was reportedly one of those who suffered enormous personal losses because of the unlimited liability which a 'name' was then responsible for, and he was forced to sell his hard won Lonsdale belts.

Subsequently, Cooper's enduring popularity as an after dinner speaker provided a source of income and he was in most respects a picture of contentment until the death of his wife. Considering his long career, Henry Cooper had suffered relatively little boxing-related damage to his health. Apart from "a bit of arthritis", his only problem had been damage to a knee because of running several miles a day in plimsolls in the days before trainers became available. Cooper remained an imposing figure into his seventies, in the words of one journalist, "the living manifestation of an age of tuxedos in ringside seats, Harry Carpenter commentaries, sponge buckets and 'seconds out'". He lived in Hildenborough, Kent, and he was the president of Nizels Golf Club in the town until his death. Cooper was married to Albina Genepri, an Italian Catholic, from 1960 until her death from a heart attack aged 71 in 2008. He converted to her faith. He was survived by their sons, Henry Marco and John Pietro, and two grandchildren. He left £747,098.

In an interview published a few days after his death, Cooper described Albina, who "hated" his sport, as "an ideal wife for a boxer", never grumbling about his long absences before big fights and inviting journalists in for tea while they waited for Cooper to get out of bed the morning after bouts. Awards And Honours Cooper was the first to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award twice (in 1967 and 1970) and one of only three two-time winners in the award's history (the others being Nigel Mansell in 1986 and 1992 and Damon Hill in 1994 and 1996). Cooper was given the award in 1967 for going unbeaten throughout the year. One of the most memorable fights of the year was his defeat of challenger Jack Bodell in June. His second award came in 1970, when Cooper had become the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion, cementing his reputation as one of the greatest post-war British boxers. He is the only British boxer to win three Lonsdale Belts outright.

Cooper was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1969, awarded a Papal Knighthood in 1978, and was knighted in 2000. He is also celebrated as one of the great Londoners in the "London Song" by Ray Davies on his 1998 album The Storyteller.

Question: Which boxer, born 3rd May 1934, grew up on the Bellingham Estate in south east London?
Answer: Henry Cooper